Note: most characters appear in a number of entries, with many entries building on previous conversations. Profile of characters. You’ll catch on quickly. Thanks for your time and interest…and comments.

Scene: coffee shop near Jordan’s office. Matt, a reporter for a major newspaper, had interviewed Jordan for anearlier series of articles. Jordan and Matt having a conversation about Matt’s upcoming book, the causes of the Revenge Revolution. This general conversation starts Entry #165.

Matt: “Early on in the conversation you said there were three major factors contributing to the Revenge Revolution. We’ve talked about two – policies of the so-called Republican Taliban and the unintended consequence of the NRA opposition to any gun control measures. The third was…”

Jordan: “…a perceived lack of commitment by the black community to improve.”

Matt: “That comment seems cruel.”

Jordan: “There are always multiple issues leading to a revolution. One can argue whether these three are the most important but I think the issues had a major influence.”

Matt: “Talk more about why you think there was, maybe still is, a lack of commitment to improve by the black community. Seems so controversial.”

Jordan: “The statement probably is controversial, at least to a lot of people. To me the statement is the elephant in the room that people, especially politicians and the black community, don’t want to address.”

Matt: “How did you support your conclusion?”

Jordan: “There was no preconceived conclusion so I had nothing to support. Reaching a conclusion…or at least trying to reach a conclusion was intentional but there was no preconceived notion about what the conclusion would be.”

Matt: “You think you were objective in the analysis? I mean, reaching a conclusion about a segment of society seems like…you know, seems like pushing the envelope of objectivity.”

Jordan: “To me the analysis was straightforward.”

Matt: “Let’s not do it today but sometime soon I would really appreciate understanding your approach to problem solving.”

Jordan: “Glad to share the methodology with you. There’s no magic to it, really.”

Matt: “OK. Understanding your approach will be helpful for me. Apologies for the sidebar. Back to the topic at hand.”

Jordan: “The first question I asked myself was simple. ‘After 150+ years since the Emancipation Proclamation, why are blacks still at the bottom rung of the economic ladder?'”

Matt: “Many people will claim the reason is discrimination, racism, profiling…and stuff like that. And some claim the culture in the native land is different from the US.”

Jordan: “Here’s the fallacy in those arguments. Every ethnic group in this country has faced the same issues.”

Matt: “But has the discrimination been as severe as it has been for blacks?”

Jordan: “When people claim other groups haven’t suffered as much, I show them some pictures. I carry one on my phone just to make a point.”

Matt: “Mmmm. Sign says ‘No dogs, no blacks and no Irish.'”

Jordan: “And you can find similar examples for every other ethnic group, whether in the US, in England…you pick the country.”

Matt: “So then I take it you asked “Why have the other ethnic groups progressed while blacks have stayed at the bottom?’ Right?”

Jordan: “Society has not stopped discriminating against other groups. Whenever…I should say almost always…a group in the minority is discriminated against.”

Matt: “Never thought about discrimination quite like that. I see your point. In a community of mostly blacks, I might be discriminated against.”

Jordan: “I’m not claiming the discrimination is always intentional. But discrimination happens.”

Matt: “Such as you going to a conference and the lunch options are a pulled pork BBQ sandwich and Caesar salad with bacon chips in the dressing.”

Jordan: “You’d think that would not happen at conferences but it does.”

Matt: “So what do you do?”

Jordan: “Smile and figure out what I can eat and move on. I might send a note to the event coordinator as a reminder. I understand most of these incidents are unintentional or out of ignorance.”

Matt: “Do you think a diversity or sensitivity program would help?”

Jordan: “Probably. But diversity is not a critical factor in making the kind of change we’re talking about.”

Matt: “Why not? Many school systems have diversity programs.”

Jordan: “True. Diversity programs in local schools also have drawbacks. My view is pushing diversity programs in schools hurts rather than helps the black community.”

Matt: “Why?”

Jordan: “Diversity programs require moving kids from one school to a different school. If the local school were diverse there would be no need to transport the kids.”

Matt: “And moving means busing.”

Jordan: “Busing means kids have less time to study, less time to play, less time for after-school programs…and irony of all ironies, all the interaction of kids on the bus is with kids who are ‘not diverse’, which is the exact opposite of what the program is designed to accomplish.”

Matt: “Does anyone ever think about what you just described?”

Jordan: “Either not in depth, or if they have thought about, they don’t talk about it because it’s not politically correct.”

Matt: “See what you mean.”

Jordan: “What’s even less PC is calculating how many parents who focus on their kid’s education pull the kids out of public school.”

Matt: “Is there any value in busing?”

Jordan: “Some aspects are probably positive. But the negatives seem to far outweigh the positives. And who knows the true cost to taxpayers.”

Matt: “Listen, I need more coffee. Tell me you conclusion so I can think about it over the break.”

Jordan: “OK. The black community needs to look in the mirror and begin taking personal responsibility for their kids education. Every other ethnic group has educated their children as a way of getting off the bottom rung.”

Matt: “What about the effects of slavery?”

Jordan: “Slavery is an excuse and not an inhibitor to taking personal responsibility. Let’s go get a refill.”